# Unix timestamp converter

URL: https://shahid09.is-a.dev/tools/unix-timestamp-converter/
Author: Muhammad Shahid (https://shahid09.is-a.dev/)
Free tool · runs in your browser

Convert a Unix timestamp (epoch time) to a readable date, or a date to a timestamp, and see the current time in seconds and milliseconds.

**Quick answer:** A Unix timestamp is the number of seconds since 1 January 1970 at 00:00 UTC. Paste one and the tool shows the date in UTC and in your local time zone; it detects milliseconds automatically (13 digits instead of 10). It also converts a date and time back into a timestamp.

## How to use it

1. **Paste a timestamp.** Seconds (10 digits) or milliseconds (13 digits) are detected automatically.
2. **Read the date.** You get the date in UTC, in your local time zone and in ISO 8601 format.
3. **Or pick a date.** Choose a date and time to get its timestamp in seconds and milliseconds.

## Frequently asked questions

### What is epoch time?

The number of seconds since 1 January 1970, 00:00:00 UTC. It is the same everywhere, regardless of time zone.

### Is my timestamp in seconds or milliseconds?

Current timestamps have 10 digits in seconds and 13 in milliseconds. JavaScript Date.now() returns milliseconds; most APIs and JWTs use seconds.

### How do I get the current timestamp in JavaScript?

Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000) for seconds, or Date.now() for milliseconds.

### Why is my date off by some hours?

The timestamp is in UTC; the difference is your time zone offset. Compare the UTC and local results.

### What is the year 2038 problem?

Systems that store timestamps as signed 32-bit integers overflow on 19 January 2038. Modern systems use 64-bit values.

### Do Unix timestamps include leap seconds?

No. Unix time ignores leap seconds, so every day is exactly 86,400 seconds.

### What is ISO 8601?

An international date format such as 2026-10-31T14:30:00Z, where the Z means UTC.

### How do I convert a timestamp in Python?

datetime.fromtimestamp(ts, tz=timezone.utc) gives a UTC date, and int(datetime.now(timezone.utc).timestamp()) gives the current timestamp.

### Can a Unix timestamp be negative?

Yes. Negative values are dates before 1 January 1970.

### Should I store dates as timestamps or strings?

Either works. Store times in UTC and convert to the user's time zone only when you display them.

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